Slamherst

Miles and I decided to spend our two and half year anniversary in Amherst, MA. We like to go driving - if you can't tell that yet - especially now that fall is in full swing, and a cute day trip out to a quieter town than Boston seemed like the perfect way to spend the day. (I also pushed pretty hard for it as I'm an Emily Dickinson fan, and she lived in Amherst her whole life). Little did we know it happened to be a "halfway to St. Patrick's Day"celebration, which we didn't find out until we had already gotten there - and from a pretty funny source. We tried local beer, explored the Farmers' Market, and drove around the surrounding fields and woods to get a good enough dose of nature.

We had intended to maybe go to a winery outside of Amherst or maybe on a hike, but we left a bit late to hike and once we got to Amherst and parked, we ended up just walking around downtown and eventually getting food at a local bar called The High Horse, which brewed its own beer. The beers were pretty good! The food photographed a bit better than it tasted, but I did still eat all of it so I can't say I didn't enjoy it! I got their IPA and Miles got a Belgian Wheat Beer called Mr. White. All and all they were good! I'm crazy for hops so I would have loved more, but it was fun to drink the local juice!

Probably the funniest and least expected thing about our excursion to Amherst was that it happened to be halfway to St. Patricks Day which, for UMass kids, is a cause for celebration. Tons of people were lining up outside and pouring out of bars downtown dressed in full St. Patricks day regalia. I wish I had gotten a picture, but you can imagine the atmosphere. It was pretty funny and I wouldn't have had a problem except that I had been dying to go to Antonio's since we had decided to come to Amherst, as I'd seen it was the best pizza in the area and I love pizza, but it was SO FULL of a combination of drunk college kids from the bars and families coming from the cute outdoor farmers market a block or two away. The combination of so many of the two in such close quarters was a bit much so we ended up at High Horse, which worked out anyway! If this little trip taught us anything, it was how to make the most of curve balls and still have a chill day when the destination is completely different than we expected.

All in all I'd say Amherst is a fun way to spend a day in New England, especially in fall, but the town itself wasn't what I expected. Chalk that up to my own ignorance though, before deciding I wanted to go there the only thing I knew about Amherst was that Emily Dickinson's house was there. Sometimes I just get these ideas and get REALLY excited about them without really thinking it through or even investigating that much. Had I realized there would be a halfway to St. Patty's day celebration, that it was like that, I definitely would have approached the whole thing with a different mindset and come with my drinking cap on. Still, everywhere surrounding Amherst is gorgeous, and its worth the drive out just for that. If you're looking for a good time surrounded by 18-24 year olds, and some families and young professionals scattered here and there, it's a fun place to stop through. Who can dislike a place that doesn't just celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but the half-way mark too? As a former Irish Dancer, I can respect that.

Em+